The Grooved Whale Project

Humpback Whales:::singers of song

At 45 feet and just as many tons, the Humpback Whales of the northwest Pacific congregate each summer to feed in the waters of southeast Alaska and journey each winter to the tropical breeding grounds of Hawaii.

Humpbacks feed on two types of food – krill (tiny shrimp-like creatures) and herring. When Herring is on the menu,the whales engage in a behavior known as group feeding which begins with 10-15 whales encircling a Herring ball in an underwater trap known as a bubblenet.

As the bubbles rise, a whale trumpets a feeding call for to a minute or two before sweeping the frequency upwards to cue a synchronous surface lunge. A hydrophone isn’t needed to hear these sounds. They travel up through the hull and into your ears. 160 decibels of riffs, blasts, swoops and screams. A trumpet section out on the loose. Feeding calls are never the same twice – phrases change or are rearranged with every instance.

In Hawaii, the Humpbacks sing their famous mating song which is comprised of low grunts to high whistles and is sung exclusively by the males. The song lasts between 20 – 35 minutes with each whale singing the same arrangement of verse, chorus, verse – though not in unison.

An interesting feature of the song is that it begins each season where it left of previously and incorporates new refrains as the season progresses. The Winter Song is thought by some researchers to act as sonic antlers – either to attract females to the singer by the qualities of his call, or to repel competing males.

Hawaii Humpback Whale Song